Athens-based group and OU partner to conduct landmark study on osteoporosis diagnosis

One in four women who break a hip die within one year. And in severe osteoporosis cases, a person can break a bone from something as simple as bumping into furniture or sneezing. While there are drugs that can help, they frequently come with side effects. So, knowing how strong your bones are is the critical first step.

This critical first step is where a local medical technology start-up, OsteoDx Inc., is looking to help. For the past several years OsteoDx, which is a spinoff business from Ohio University, has been working to commercialize a new technology that they believe could help improve the diagnosis of osteoporosis. The current standard for assessing bone health is to measure the density of bones using a special x-ray machine. Bone density, however, does not do a great job at predicting fracture risk — in part because the density of the bone is only part of what determines the actual strength of the bone.

OsteoDx’s approach, however, involves using vibration testing to directly estimate bone strength. This approach is similar to what engineers may use to determine the strength of, for example, a bridge. And no x-rays, other radiation, or incisions are involved. “Our approach is to measure what matters”, said Andrew Dick of New Marshfield who serves as OsteoDx’s director of engineering. “We leverage classical structural engineering principles to quantify bone stiffness, which yields a near perfect estimate of whole bone strength.”

OsteoDx has gained a lot of attention in recent years. In 2019, it was selected as one of 20 start-ups in the nation for the University Innovation & Entrepreneurship Showcase in Washington, D.C., and in 2020 the company was a finalist for the “Most Innovative Technology” award in a NASA-sponsored competition. They have also received major investment funding and support from TechGROWTH Ohio and received numerous grants totaling millions of dollars from the National Institutes of Health.

Currently, OsteoDx is conducting a landmark study- called The STRONGER Study- that will determine how good their device is at distinguishing people who have experienced an osteoporotic fracture from those who have not.

“Between now and the end of the summer we plan to enroll over 400 women, age 50-80, into the multi-center STRONGER study. We are looking for women who have experienced a fragility fracture as well as those who have strong and robust bones so that we can compare the OsteoDx technology to standard bone density tests.”

I am one of the co-founders of OsteoDx the Director of the Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute (OMNI) at Ohio University. Along with Mr. Dick, we are the lead scientists on the grant funding this study, which is being conducted here at Ohio University as well as at Indiana University, the University of South Florida, and the University of Florida.

“This is a pivotal study for us that will really help determine whether this new device has clinical utility. We are optimistic that this could help prevent fractures, save lives, and of course, help the Southeast Ohio economy by creating more jobs,” said Ron Lachey, JD, OsteoDx’s CEO.

The Ohio University team is currently looking for people to participate in this study, so, if you would like to be a participant, call 740-566-9873 or email ctru@ohio.edu. The study is looking for women who have experienced bone fractures, as well as those who have very strong bones.

Brian C. Clark, Ph.D. is the OHF Harold E. Clybourne, D.O. Endowed Research Chair, a professor of physiology and neuroscience in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Ohio University and the executive director, Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute (OMNI)